Global Foliage Clumping Index at 500-Meter Resolution

500-meter resolution global clumping index data for 2006, derived from MODIS Bidirectional Reflectance Distribution Function (BRDF) data. This dataset quantifies the degree of foliage grouping within plant canopies, a key structural parameter for ecological modeling. It is provided by ORNL_CLOUD and is available on multiple platforms.

Use Cases

• Improving the accuracy of Leaf Area Index (LAI) estimates in vegetation models.
• Parameterizing radiative transfer models for canopy reflectance.
• Studying the impact of canopy structure on photosynthesis and carbon flux.
• Validating coarse-resolution clumping index products.
• Analyzing global patterns of vegetation architecture for a single year (2006).

Strengths

• Provides data at a substantially higher spatial resolution (500-m) than existing clumping index products.
• Offers a global-scale snapshot of a key canopy structural parameter for a defined year.

Limitations

• Conflicting metadata: last updated date is reported as both 2006-12-31 and 2026-03 13 across different sources.
• Limited temporal coverage, containing data for only the year 2006.
• Specific column names and total row/size counts are not provided by any source.

Provenance

Source

ORNL_CLOUD

Collection Method

Derived from the MODIS Bidirectional Reflectance Distribution Function (BRDF) data product.

Time Range

2006

Freshness

2026-03-13 02:28:58.946529

Geography

Global